The effects of bad weather on road maintenance has resulted in some hefty overtime expense for Gasconade County officials.

The time needed by Road Department crews to clear snow this winter and then repair rain-damaged roads this spring has county government administrators returning to a familiar issue — how to accommodate the overtime costs without causing too big a hit to the operating budget.

Two road agency employees had built up more than 120 hours, noted County Clerk Lesa Lietzow, who had been alerted to the accumulation of overtime by auditors who were working on the county’s regular audit.

“We can’t afford to pay” for all of those hours, said Presiding Commissioner Tim Schulte, R-Hermann.

“I don’t think we can afford to not pay,” the county clerk said.

The County Commission agreed last week to take the same steps previous Commissions took in past years: Pay part of the overtime that’s been accumulated and require the employees to take some time away from the shop as compensatory time.

In other matters taken up during last week’s first-Thursday-of-the-month session held in Owensville City Hall, Southern District Associate Commissioner Ron Hardecke reported that another tire dump was discovered in the southern part of the county. This time tires were dumped on Hog Trough Road.

A couple weeks earlier, tires were dumped along county roads on both ends of the county. The Sheriff’s Department issued a citation for littering to at least one person.

County Treasurer Mike Feagan reported that a detailed breakdown of the county’s sales taxes should be available at tomorrow’s Commission session in the courthouse. He was not able to provide a detailed report by last week’s session, but he did tell county administrators that the May reimbursement check for the General Fund Sales Tax topped $100,000.

Also, his monthly report on the county’s bank account shows a healthy balance at the end of April — $6.128 million compared with $5.053 million at the same time last year.

“Everything looks pretty good,” Feagan said.

Meanwhile, Chief Deputy Clerk Danielle Norsic was on hand for the Owensville session. As the lone candidate to succeed the retiring Lietzow, Norsic is the presumptive successor to head the office. She has been serving as the chief deputy clerk for about a year and said she expects to be attending the Commission sessions in the coming weeks, getting more familiar with the task performed by Lietzow for many years.

“That office is in good hands,” Schulte said, referring to Norsic. “She’s learned from the best,” he added as a nod to Lietzow.

The Commission tomorrow is scheduled to consider bids from contractors for cutting a doorway into what will be the new Gasconade County Recorder of Deeds Office on the first floor of the courthouse. The Recorder’s Office was separated from the Circuit Clerk’s Office last summer by the Commission in a move to improve county government efficiency. County voters this fall will elect the first-ever Recorder of Deeds. Jessica Diebal, chief deputy recorder to Circuit Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Jennifer Schneider, is the lone candidate for the new office.